At my current institution a new lecturer got a chewing-out from the departmental chair because the pass rate in an introductory class was too low. The institution managed to keep enrollment constant but had to drop admission standards markedly this year to be able to do so. Other faculty members noticed the poor performance of the incoming freshman class compared to previous years as well.

New kid came fresh from a PhD program at a credible university and thought the purpose of a university lecturer was to teach to a minimum standard. The naivete!

This is at a large state school in the Southern US.